Wrexham: Calls made to improve public transport in city

The calls were made at a meeting of the Wrexham Business Professionals group, who were told that improvements to public transport links are needed urgently to attract new companies to the city.

The group heard from the vice chancellor of Wrexham University, Professor Maria Hinfelaar, and her colleague, Dr Paul Hildreth, an international advisor on cities, regions and local economies. 

The pair are the joint authors of a new study looking at the business make-up of the Mersey Dee Valley area - which includes Wrexham, Flintshire and Chester – both before and after Brexit and Covid 19 disruption.

Pictured (Left and Right ) Louise Harper and Ian Edwards of Wrexham Business Professionals with guest speakers Professor Maria Hinfelaar, vice chancellor, Wrexham university and Dr Paul Hildreth; Uk and international Advisor on Cities, Regions and Local Economies. (Image: Ceidiog PR)

Nearly 50 companies across the region took part in the study to assess how the make-up of the area affects the potential for economic growth.

The report included two case studies involving Wrexham-based companies, cereals producer Kellogg’s and Unimaq.

Dr Hildreth said: “Unlike cities such as neighbouring Liverpool or Manchester where everything is more cohesively integrated, Wrexham, Flintshire and Chester all have their own identities and strive to independently maintain those identities while also working inter-dependently to try to support each other.

“From a trading and growth perspective it faces a more unusual set of circumstances and challenges than most big cities. One of the main problems for employers and employees can be simply getting from A to B.”

The point was echoed by Professor Hinfelaar, who said: “Certainly in both the case studies of Kellogg’s and Unimaq, this was mentioned as being a hindrance to recruitment with many areas, including Wrexham Industrial Estate proving virtually inaccessible for anyone who does not have a car.”

Rachel Clacher, co-founder of Wrexham-based Moneypenny, also weighed in on the debate. 

According to Ms Clacher, she had come across numerous examples of public transport being lacking to meet the needs of employers and employees. A case in point was the example of a young woman, who spent four hours travelling the eight miles to and from work.

Ms Clacher said: “She has to first travel by bus from Gwersyllt to Wrexham bus station where she has to wait 45 minutes for a second bus to take her to Wrexham Industrial Estate, in all it’s a two hour commute.

“If you add in the return journey that is four hours of this young woman’s time spent travelling, every day. The fact is that the service is not good enough.

“These are the sort of issues we need to address if Wrexham is to benefit from the opportunities which are coming its way over the next few years.”

She said Wrexham’s new found city status and its place in the international spotlight were key drivers which could pull in more investment to help boost the local economy.

Wrexham has seen a huge increase in development in recent years, largely thanks to the worldwide profile generated by Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds, Wrexham AFC's owners. 

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But she stressed that businesses and local authorities need to work together to overcome any ongoing obstacles which may deter investors.

Ian Edwards, a leading member of Wrexham Business Professionals, said: “Our poor public transport infrastructure is stifling growth at a time when we have an unprecedented opportunity to forge ahead economically in Wrexham."

Deputy Leader of Wrexham Council, David A Bithell, said: “The council is committed to supporting the bus and rail network. The council has committed £400k over the past two years to support growth in the bus network and this together with Welsh Government transport grant is £800k a year.

"We also need to recognise that costs have increased but more work needs to be carried out both on rail and bus. I am pleased that we have an excellent relationship with Welsh Government to grow and meet future demand now Wrexham is a city.”